I've undertaken an important project this afternoon to determine which movies should have won Best Picture based on "pop culture impact." That's not super easy to define, but I took into account things like box office receipts, polling on top 50 most viewed movies, etc. I also limited to bw 2000 and 1970 because it gets harder to judge the staying power of more recent movies, and I just didn't care to go earlier than 1970. So here is my list submitted for your consideration....
Year | Winner | Should'a Won |
2000 | Gladiator | Gladiator |
1999 | American Beauty | The Matrix (Sixth Sense Runner Up) |
1998 | Shakespeare in Love | Saving Private Ryan |
1997 | Titanic | Titanic |
1996 | The English Patient | Jerry Macguire (ID4 Runner Up) |
1995 | Braveheart | Braveheart |
1994 | Forrest Gump | Forrest Gump (Shawshank and Pulp Fiction Runners Up) |
1993 | Schindler's List | Jurassic Park |
1992 | Unforgiven | A Few Good Men |
1991 | Silence of the Lambs | Silence of the Lambs |
1990 | Dances with Wolves | Ghost |
1989 | Driving Miss Daisy | Field of Dreams |
1988 | Rain Man | Die Hard (sorry Rain Man, but Die Hard) |
1987 | Last Emperor | Dirty Dancing (yes) |
1986 | Platoon | Top Gun |
1985 | Out of Africa | Back to the Future |
1984 | Amadeus | Ghostbusters |
1983 | Terms of Endearment | A Christmas Story |
1982 | Ghandi | E.T. |
1981 | Chariots of Fire | Raiders of the Lost Ark |
1980 | Ordinary People | Star Wars: Episode V |
1979 | Kramer v Kramer | Alien |
1978 | The Deer Hunter | Grease |
1977 | Annie Hall | Star Wars: Episode IV |
1976 | Rocky | Rocky |
1975 | One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest | Jaws |
1974 | The Godfather II | The Godfather II |
1973 | The Sting | The Exorcist |
1972 | The Godfather | The Godfather |
1971 | The French Connection | A Clockwork Orange |
1970 | Patton | Patton |
So according to this list, the Academy goes about 1 for 3 picking movies that audiences actually appreciate and have staying power (which actually is better than I expected).
I will take corrections under advisement.